Tag: mba
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This Valentine’s Day, we checked in with some of our MBA alumni who found love at McCombs and have tied the knot in the last year. Find out how they met and what they’re up to now.

Michelle Sutton ’16 and Javier Armenteros ’16

Wedding Date: October 21, 2017

Wedding Location: Chapel Hill, NC

How We Met: By chance, we were seated next to each other at the MBA Orientation Banquet on our very first day of the program, but we did not get to know each other well until our second semester when we traveled to Park City, Utah on the Graduate Business Adventure Team (GBAT) Ski Trip and then to South Africa as part of the McCombs Global Connections Study Tour program.

Currently: We live in Dallas, TX, where Michelle is an Associate Brand Manager at Dr Pepper Snapple Group, and Javi is an Associate Finance Manager at PepsiCo Frito Lay. We are both proud Longhorns and are involved in MBA recruiting for our respective companies.

“We loved having such a strong contingent of McCombies at our wedding!”

Christie Sutton ’15 and Patrick McConnell ’15

Wedding Date: October 14, 2017

Wedding Location: San Francisco, CA (originally planned for Healdsburg in Sonoma County, but due to the Northern California fires, we made a last minute move to San Francisco with the help of many of our McCombs friends)

How We Met: We met in Austin during one of the McCombs Adventure Program (MAP) Day Trips, which take place before school officially begins. We sat next to each other on the bus to the wine tasting tour in Fredericksburg, TX and were friends from the start.

Currently: We currently live in San Francisco, CA and both work at Apple. Christie works in market development for the Corporate Retail division, and Pat works as a program manager on the new product launch team.

Christie and Pat with MBA classmates at their wedding

Faraha Kukkady ’16 and Anirudh Kasbekar ’16

Wedding Date: October 14, 2017

Wedding Location: The Wild Onion Ranch in Manchaca, TX (just south of Austin)

How We Met: We met through mutual friends at Yellowstone National Park before we had even applied to business school. Against the backdrop of the gushing geysers and breathtaking landscapes, we discussed the GMAT and hit it off! We maintained a coast to coast relationship thereafter, and McCombs gave us the opportunity to be together by extending an offer of admission to both of us – the rest is history!

Currently: We live in Austin, TX and both work in Product Management at Dell Technologies.

Faraha and Rudy with classmates and Assistant Dean, Tina Mabley, who officiated the ceremony

Ruth Stedman ’16 and Javier Marriott ’16

Wedding Date: February 3, 2018

Wedding Location: New Orleans, LA

How We Met: We met at a pool party during Orientation at Javier’s building. Soon after that we started dating and bonding over our fondness for breakfast tacos and dogs.

Currently: We split time between Ecuador and Austin, TX. Ruth is the Co-Founder and CEO of a new Austin startup Grocery Pup, a company that’s on a mission to bring transparency to dog food and improve the overall quality of what we feed our pups. Javier is the COO of the MARRIOTT GROUP ECUADOR, a holding company that’s involved in retail, wholesale, distribution, real estate development, and project management. Javier is also a Co-Founder of Grocery Pup and serves as Chief Growth Officer and Director for the company.

The Texas McCombs MBA contingent celebrating with Ruth and Javier in New Orleans

Javier and Ruth with their dog Lola for @thegrocerypup

Mallika Swaminathan ’16 and Kunal Khanna ’17

Wedding Date: June 4, 2017

Wedding Location: Austin, TX

Going to Business School Together: We were together before business school, but we loved our time at McCombs and would do it all over again if we could!

Currently: Mallika is a Senior Consultant at Deloitte, based out of Austin, TX, while Kunal is an Associate at Lazard in Houston, TX.

McCombs friends celebrating Mallika & Kunal’s Big Day

Cecilia Laseter ’15 and Charles Leonard ’15

Wedding Date: October 14, 2017

Wedding Location: Charlottesville, VA

How We Met: We met in our hometown of Charlottesville because a mutual friend realized that we both had plans to move to Austin to attend McCombs. We were introduced just a few weeks before we both moved, so when we arrived in Austin, we knew at least one person to hang out with. Our dogs got along too, so it just worked. We got engaged in the mountains north of Banff, married in Cville, and honeymooned in Switzerland, France, and Italy.

Currently: We live in Austin, TX, where Ceci is a Senior Program Manager at Whole Foods, and Charlie is a Director of Cybersecurity Risk & Strategy at PwC.

This is the third in a series of posts on GMAT/GRE testing. We encourage you to review previous posts, if you have not already.

Before you make a final decision on which test to take, it’s best to research some of your target companies or industries and determine two things:

The extent to which they evaluate a test score in reviewing job candidates.

Whether they have a preference for one of the tests. At McCombs, we have found that most consulting and investment banking firms do look at the candidate’s score, and both industries historically have favored the GMAT.

Regardless of which test you take, you should consider it as another opportunity to not only impress the Admissions Committee, but also potential employers.Continue reading

Once you’ve done your research on the format and content of the GMAT and GRE tests, you’re ready to settle on which one you want to take and start your preparation.

If you still need a review of each test to help you navigate the details, see our previous post examining both test options.

Test preparation is critical. The tests are rigorous, but your prep has the advantage of getting you in the right mindset for entering a top MBA program– where the exams and workload will be just as challenging, if not more so.

Prep tools include books that take you through the format of the test and offer practice exams, as well as formal prep classes (in person or online) and tutoring that can cost hundreds of dollars. Going with a more affordable option can work for some candidates.

“If you did well on the SAT or if you have a rigorous math background, you might be able to prepare on your own.”

So your first question will be: Which test do I take?

Like coffee vs. tea, or vanilla vs. chocolate ice cream, the choice is entirely yours. We have no preference, though more of our students end up choosing the GMAT because it is designed to prepare candidates specifically for business school. And some professions, like consulting and investment banking, do prefer that you have a GMAT score to report. (We’ll have more on this in a future blog post.)

While both tests have quantitative and verbal sections, they have noticeable differences. We encourage you to do your research and take practice tests to learn each test’s points of emphasis, and how they are scored.

The Texas MBA Program receives many applications from highly qualified applicants throughout the year. It’s impossible to fit everyone into the physical space of our program, so we have an MBA waitlist.

The waitlist can be a challenging place for applicants, given its uncertainty and lack of a clear timeline and expectations, but we feel very strongly that it is also a wonderful opportunity, an exercise in patience, and a gift of time not given to all who apply.

The waitlist is not a final decision from the Texas MBA Admissions Committee. Rather, it is a place to wait and see what unfolds. Please explore the information below to better understand what it means to be on the Texas MBA waitlist, and how you can make the most of this time.